1. The Field of the Invention
As is well known it has become popular in recent years for many people to travel long distances by bus or other public conveyances. In so doing, it is necessary for them to spend many hours, sometimes days and even weeks more or less confined to a single seat in the vehicle. This necessitates provision for comfort, particularly at night or during rest periods to permit the passenger to sleep. While the airlines have for some time provided small pillows for the comfort of their passengers, this has not been customary among the bus lines whose passengers are generally confined aboard the vehicle for even longer periods of time than air travelers. For these reasons it is apparent that a need has long existed for a comfortable and convenient travel pillow.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art has not, surprisingly enough, devoted much attention to this problem. To be sure, inflatable cushions are known, as disclosed in Klepper U.S. Pat. No. 2,987,114, issued June 6, 1961, which describes air cushions particularly adapted to be detachably connected to boat seats or used as back rests or life preservers.
More pertinent to the present problem is Porter U.S. Pat. No. 2,682,918 issued July 6, 1954 for a general purpose air cushion adapted for use as a seat cushion, head or back rest. These air cushions comprise a pair of hollow inflatable cushion sections, each having a front wall and a back wall, means joining the back wall of one section to the front wall of the other section over an area, valve means in the wall of one of the inflatable sections to provide for the introduction of air into said section, and means establishing communication between said inflatable sections, said means including a hole through said joined back and front wall within said area, thus providing a double air cushion.
Diamond U.S. Pat. No. 3,644,949 issued Feb. 29, 1972, describes an air inflatable cushion having a plurality of separately inflatable sections each superposed one above the other and each having diverse thickness front to back when inflated. The several sections also have differing average thickness so that when selectively inflated a total cushion of various heights and shapes is provided to accommodate the various parts of the body as desired.
Stamberger U.S. Pat. No. 3,898,703 issued Aug. 12, 1975 describes an inflatable cushion having means for increasing the air pressure in the cushion by the use of folding elements.
Schick U.S. Pat. No. 3,222,694 issued Dec. 14, 1964 describes a portable seat cushion. Winkler U.S. Pat. No. 3,308,489 issued Mar. 14, 1967 describes a cushion for resting the legs. Howard U.S. Pat. No. 3,253,861 issued May 31, 1966 describes an inflatable cushion for use as a back rest and having provision for ventilation.
Sumergrade U.S. Pat. No. 3,411,164 issued Nov. 19, 1968 describes a pillow having a plurality of divider panels forming separate compartments. An inflatable member is disposed within the casting and a filling material is disposed between the inflatable member and the fabric cover. In this pillow the inflatable member is positioned in a central compartment normally beneath the user's head, whereas the side compartmentsare stuffed with inexpensive filler, since they are not usually involved in the sleeper's comfort.
It should be apparent from the foregoing that the art has previously given little or no attention to the provision of pillows especially adapted for the comfort and convenience of travelers.